


The Bet (or How Henry Now Has To Teach a Vampire Videogames)

by roguelightning



Category: Sanctuary (TV)
Genre: F/M, Teslen - Freeform, but only implied at first
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-05
Updated: 2020-06-05
Packaged: 2021-03-04 05:41:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,460
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24558595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/roguelightning/pseuds/roguelightning
Summary: Henry makes a bet about Helen's love life. He ends up losing it. Retrospectively though, if we're to be honest about it.
Relationships: Helen Magnus/Nikola Tesla
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	1. Chapter 1

“… and this is how the War of the Currents was won,” Helen ended with a smile, relishing the look of awe on Henry’s face. It wasn’t too often that he gave her this look, but it reminded her of when he was a teenager fascinated by her stories. “Now people may not remember everything, but as someone who lived in those times… Nikola is the reason we have electricity today, and don’t let anybody tell you otherwise.”

“Wait. Nikola?” Ashley said, her attention suddenly perked up.

“Yes, Nikola Tesla, he’s the one who-“

“No, I mean since when were you on a first name basis with him? Normally when you tell us about history you’re not that involved.” The grin that was spreading over Ashley’s face was definitely not a good thing, Helen decided.

“Wait, you knew him? Like personally?” Henry asked, an even more awe-struck look on his face.

“I knew a lot of people,” Helen said. “Comes with me being over 100 years old.”

“Yeah but it’s the first time you’ve been so evasive in a long time,” Ashley grinned. “I think the last time you acted weird like this was when I asked you about the Ripper-“

“Nikola and I were… friends once,” Helen said as quickly as she could. After all from the two of them Nikola was a subject she could handle more easily.

“Uh-huh, friends,” Ashley grinned at her. “What else? I’ve seen pictures, mum, the moustache was a bit much, but other than that you have to admit he was pretty easy on the eyes.”

“The moustache wasn’t a permanent thing, actually,” Helen said, a smile playing on her lips.

“Really? I thought that was like his trademark look,” Henry chimed in.

“Well it was for when he got out in public, but- Nevermind,” Helen caught herself. It wasn’t the time and place to tell her children that the moustache had been a part of a makeup designed to make him look his actual age.”

“Please tell me you went to his lectures,” Henry said and Helen couldn’t help a dreamy sigh at that. She had managed to catch a few and she had been completely mesmerized by them. Of course, Nikola was nothing short of a show off and she had had her arguments with him about showing off his powers in public like that (not that anybody had caught up on what he actually was, but still), but she had to admit that he knew how to take control of the audience.

“I did, yes,” Helen admitted. “You would have loved those, actually,” she continued. “There was something about the way he looked at the crowd and yet his gaze seemed to hold yours, as if he was doing a private show just for you, like he wanted to convince you of the fact that every one of his ideas is possible. And trust me when I say, he had some really far out ideas. But being there with him and listening to him talk? It made you believe everything was possible.” It had also felt incredibly intimate in a way, the way he had watched her, singling her out from the audience, his blue eyes sinking into hers. Years later she found out that was some sort of a trick actors did. They weren’t looking at you, they were looking at some point in space situated above your head, but it made them seem personally focused on you.

“Wow, mum, you crushed hard on him didn’t you?” Ashley said with a grin, interrupting her thoughts.

“So what if she did a bit? It’s your mum we’re talking about, the chances that they were involved are pretty slim.” Henry retorted. “No offense, Doc,” he added quickly, but Helen just waved it off. “Besides the guy was asexual, so it kind of defies-“ he stopped mid-sentence when he realized Helen had just snorted at him.

“History isn’t very… precise about that, if we’re to be honest. But as I said, we were just friends.”

Henry seemed satisfied by that, but Ashley was having none of it. “I bet he looked good in a suit,” she chimed in. “Heck, I bet he looked even better without anything on.”

“Ashley!” Helen admonished her, a blush creeping up her cheeks. “Can we please not discuss this?”

“That sounds suspiciously much as someone who has inside info but doesn’t want to talk about it,” Ashley remarked. “So. Care to explain why did you see him naked since you were just friends and all?”

“He was my patient for a while,” Helen said quickly. That wasn’t exactly a lie, but it wasn’t the whole truth either. She had seen him naked in other circumstances as well. None of them sexual, however, so it didn’t exactly count as a lie as far as she was concerned.

“Wait,” Henry said. “That’s interesting. You never treated normal stuff, so what was he?”

“I was just his nutritionist,” Helen said with a shrug. “I mean obviously we didn’t use the term back then, but if I were to say the most important thing I helped him with-“

“Right, so the reason you saw him naked was because you wanted to see how much belly fat he had?” Ashley snorted, causing Helen to glare at her. The girl could really get on her nerves sometimes. Anger was better, however, she decided, than what her brain was doing right now. Specifically, reminding her of what Nikola had looked like that time when she had stumbled on him by the pool. He had got out of the water, every inch of him deliciously hard as he watched her, a smirk playing on his lips when he realized she was staring at him. She could have bet the bastard had been able to tell her pulse had increased at the time. It had taken all her will to be decent at the time and it took her all her will to stop dwelling about that image of him now. Then again, resisting him was a skill she was proud to have developed over the years.

“What I did for him falls under doctor patient confidentiality, as a matter of fact,” she said, her composure regained, which made Ashley roll her eyes.

“The guy’s been dead for ages, mum, it’s not like he could sue you.” Her words had struck a chord inside Helen, but she did her best not to let it show. She had no idea where he was or if he was alive, for that matter, because it wasn’t like he had bothered to call her. She knew it was stupid to resent him for that, because she had been the one that told him it would have been dangerous to keep in touch. It didn’t make it any easier not to know if he was alive or not. Or whether he was thinking about her from time to time, not that she was going to admit she cared about that.

“I think I’ll go to bed now,” Helen said with a sigh. “Sleep tight,” she added before leaving them alone in the room.

“Well that was awkward,” Henry said. “I never saw her like that.”

“I bet they fucked,” Ashley said bluntly, causing him to stare at her in shock.

“OK, one, she’s your mother and she’s been like a mother to me too, so ew,” he said with a shudder. “Two, I don’t know. He seems a tad complicated for her tastes, you know?”

“Please, it’s my mum we’re talking about,” Ashley countered. “Remember when she told us that Amelia Earhart was probably the most normal lover she ever had?”

“Still no.”

“Ugh, you’re no fun,” Ashley sighed. “Tell you what. If we ever find out they fucked, you give me the credentials for your account in Chronicles of Spellborn.”

“Absolutely not.”

“What you’re afraid I’ll be better at the game than you?”

“No chance in hell for that, but still no.”

“You’re just afraid you’re gonna lose.”

“Fine, I’ll take your bet then,” Henry said rolling his eyes. “If only to see how you get your mum to tell you the whole story.”

“Fair enough.”

“And if you lose?”

“Name your price,” Ashley shrugged. “And I’m only saying that to be nice for the record. We both know you’re losing this one.”

“You know that band that made the soundtrack for Chronicles? You totally owe me tickets for the next time they come around here.”

“You’re on.” Ashley said with a grin. Now she just had to decide what quests she was going to try first.


	2. Chapter 2

“Hey, look what I found,” Kate said as she showed Henry her smartphone. “Didn’t you say you used to be obsessed with this game when you were younger?”

“10 years later, The Chronicles of Spellborn rises from the ashes”, Henry read. “They’re redoing the game? Huh. Never thought I’d live to see the day,” he said with a grin that slowly died on his lips, being replaced by sadness. “You know, I just remembered something,” he said with a sigh. “If Doc asks about me, tell her I’m taking the evening off.”

“Uh-huh. You’re just going to lock yourself up in your room and play the game won’t you?”

“Not exactly,” Henry said with a smile. “I’m going to go visit a friend.”

To Henry, the cathedral from the New Sanctuary wasn’t as meaningful as the old one. Helen had tried her best to recreate it underground, but it was just something that was missing. It was still the only place he could feel her close, so he was going to take it.

“Hey, Ash,” he whispered as he walked inside the cathedral, his steps echoing on the marble floor.

“Did you hear they’re redoing Chronicles?” he asked, but silence was the only answer he got.

“I don’t know if they let you play video games in Heaven or wherever you are at the moment, and I doubt you could use my old account anyway…” he continued. “But I just wanted to tell you you’ve won that stupid bet,” he said, unable to hold a laugh at that.

“ _Retrospectively_ , though, thank you very much,” he mentioned, “though there are still some time travel related issues I can’t wrap my head around. Still, your mother and Tesla are a thing now. And I mean, you don’t know the guy, not really, since you only met him twice, one time in passing and one time when you threw him around a parking lot… Which he deserved for a number of reasons, actually, even if you weren’t yourself at the moment. Oh, and there was also the time when he electrocuted you, but again, you weren’t actually there, you know. But the thing is, and I can’t believe I’m saying this… I’m happy for them.” he said with a smile.

“The first month after they hooked up was awful, you should be grateful you weren’t here when it happened. Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to walk around the Sanctuary and see them sucking face everywhere? Also sucking other things, which is funny come to think at it. Remember when she told us she was his nutritionist? Well seeing the things they do as foreplay sometimes… she is really bad at that job nowadays. Also, it took them a while to phonically isolate their bedroom and let’s just say I lost a few nights’ sleep because of that. But not taking this into consideration… she’s really happy, you know?” he sighed. “I don’t remember when I saw her that happy actually, and I have to give him the credit for that. You know how your mother is, she got into some mess a few years ago and she basically shot off everybody. Except Will for some reason, which I don’t get. Like don’t get me wrong I love the guy, you know that, but he was a shithead to her and still he was the first one she welcomed back. Well Tesla was having none of that. He was the first one he figured she wasn’t dead and didn’t stop until he found exactly what rabbit hole she had hidden in. And then he stayed with her and helped her and has been way more supportive than I would have thought him capable of, and well. It took her a while to let him in, but he is way less of a jerk these days and she’s actually happy and also tooth-achingly in love, so I suppose things worked out in the end?”

He sat on a bench, carefully considering his next words.

“So I guess what I wanted to tell you is that we’re all fine, actually. I have a kid, which I still find it hard to believe some days, but that somehow happened? His mother is a HAP too so I’m freaking out a bit for when he hits puberty, but ah well, I still have some time with him before that. I would have loved you to meet him, actually. I considered naming him after you, but well. I guess I didn’t want to do this to your mother, you know? And about that bet… well. It would be pointless to give you my credentials now, since you’re you know… Don’t make me say the d word, I can only do that once a year on the day it happened and it’s not today. Let’s just say you’re unavailable at the moment, we’ll go with that. So you couldn’t play the game even if you wanted. But I’ll promise you something in return. When Doc gets a kid of her own – and yes, that will probably happen and then I’ll probably have to babysit a vampire who will be half Tesla and I really hope they get only his genius and not his attitude… Well, when that happens, I’ll play the game with them. And I’ll probably get my ass kicked and I’ll tell them that their big sister is watching from above laughing her ass off at me. And that if you’d be there you’d kick my ass harder. Because let’s face it, that’s totally would have happened.”

With this, he sat up and headed to the door, throwing a single glance behind. “So basically, your mother is sleeping with Nikola Tesla and I’ve never seen her this happy in ages… and that is somehow a sentence I just said to my… unavailable sister who I hope can still hear me somehow. And that’s pretty much the most normal thing I did in ages. I’m starting to understand what your mother meant with Amelia,” he said, shaking his head, unable to hold a small laugh at that.


End file.
